Arts watch. Theater review.

`Squat' Is Laudable But Obvious

September 04, 1998|By Chris Jones. Special to the Tribune.

A truly schizophrenic evening of theater, the production of Lisa Cordes' "Squat" at the Trap Door Theatre is one of those shows in which prodigious talent and prolific work are ultimately undermined by poor casting choices, crude acting and an indulgent script. And by the end of over two hours of uneven drama, hot and weary audience members are unlikely to find themselves in a forgiving mood.

Set in some unnamed urban metropolis, Cordes' play takes place in an abandoned dump now occupied by squatters. This crowd of societal misfits are such a diverse group that their very diversity has become cliched. There's a gay man with AIDS; a former philosophy grad student running away from reality; an ex-baby killer; a young black man born poor; a street person with a secret and so on.

Playwright Cordes obviously intends this heart-wrenching pseudo-family to be a cutting-edge depiction of what happens when those who cannot cope with some aspect or another of mainstream society find themselves in a forgotten trash heap. A laudable aim. But in this post-"Rent" world, these metaphors have become increasingly trite and obvious. At times recalling Jonathan Larson's musical ("Squat" even contains several, mainly awful, musical numbers) and sometimes the superior work of playwright Charles L. Mee, Cordes' trite drama is ultimately both hackneyed and familiar.

Director Michael S. Pieper (a talented fellow) throws all kinds of energy into this show, creating a vivid and fast-moving production with many sophisticated visual images that go beyond what one can reasonable expect on a small, low-rent stage. He has also found a couple of terrific performers--especially Mary Ann de la Cruz as Sue, the ex-grad student who vents her frustrations by playing with a ventriloquist doll; and Sam Porretta, as Clay, the middle-class interloper whose unexplained desire to join the squat sets the drama in motion.

But despite the directorial imagination and the (partly) decent cast, the whole affair ultimately collapses in a series of trite character revelations that do not adequately substitute for a plot that offers few new developments after the first five minutes.

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"Squat" may be seen through Oct. 31 at the Trapdoor Theatre, 1655 W. Cortland Ave. Call 773-384-0494.